Monday, December 31, 2012

Goodreads description:Cassandra Caravello is
one of Renaissance Venice’s lucky elite: with elegant gowns, sparkling
jewels, her own lady’s maid, and a wealthy fiancé, she has everything a
girl could desire. Yet ever since her parents’ death, Cassandra has felt
trapped, alone in a city of water, where the dark and labyrinthine
canals whisper of escape.

When Cass stumbles upon a murdered
woman—practically in her own backyard—she’s drawn into a dangerous world
of courtesans, killers, and secret societies. Soon, she finds herself
falling for Falco, a mysterious artist with a mischievous grin... and a
spectacular skill for trouble. Can Cassandra find the murderer, before
he finds her? And will she stay true to her fiancé, or succumb to her
uncontrollable feelings for Falco?

Beauty, love, romance, and
mystery weave together in a stunning novel that’s as seductive and
surprising as the city of Venice itself.

The following review is based on a copy I purchased myself.

Review:
Venom was a gorgeous read full of mystery, set in Renaissance Venice. The author managed to portray the setting so well that I felt right there in the stifling heat of the canals rather than in snow-rainy, cold Switzerland. I love historicals, and the period was very well-rendered. I never had the feeling that the voice was too contemporary to be believable, but it wasn’t stilted or archaic either. I felt fully immersed in Paul’s description of Venetian culture with all its secrets, gossip, hidden licentiousness and outwardly moral strictness. A stunning debut!

The story begins with the funeral of a friend of our heroine Cassandra. During the service, she feels faint and leaves the church to get some fresh air. She is run over by Falco, a young artist apprentice. She finds him intriguing but also crude during those short moments they see each other. After the service, Cass returns with her aunt to her estate on an island a distance away from the main part of Venice. I found that setting very telling: the villa is ancient and crumbling, the servants are old, one of them blind. The villa is right next to the graveyard where Cass’ friend will be buried, as well. She is surrounded by death, decay, and very few people her age, and I could understand her feelings of being entombed alive and her desire to be free and truly live very well.

That same night, Cass wants to visit her friend’s grave and sneaks out to the cemetery – only to discover that the mausoleum has been broken into and the body removed, exchanged for that of a strangled girl Cass has never seen before! Once more, she runs into the mysterious Falco, and the two begin a secret investigation about the identity of the murdered girl and the reasons behind her murder. Their clues lead them deep into the Venetian underworld with its many shady and powerful characters. No one must know that Cass is exploring nocturnal Venice unattended with a young man who is neither from her class nor her fiancé, or her reputation (and thus her future) will be ruined. However, she realizes that she never feels more alive than when she’s out in the city with Falco, away from the repressive customs of her own class.

I could connect very well with Cass and liked her a lot. I did not necessarily agree with everything she did, but I understood the reasons behind it. She doesn’t really want to marry her fiancé, Luca, whom she hasn’t seen in three years. Falco is different from anyone she knows, and I really enjoyed the prickling attraction and tension between them, as well as their banter and occasional fights. They were both well-rounded characters and developed over the course of the novel. That actually goes for all the characters – none of them are quite what they seem at the beginning. Also Luca, who suddenly returns to Venice and is very much changed from the boy Cass remembers. Cass' aunt has realized that something is going on with her and wants to hasten their marriage. Cass feels terribly torn between the feelings she has developed for Falco and her duty to Luca (but not in an annoying love-triangle way, since the boys never meet), her dead parents, and her aunt. No matter what she does, she will lose something and someone dear to her.
If she doesn’t lose her life first – the killer has his eyes set on her, too.

The writing and description were gorgeous. I never wanted to stop and just plunged ahead into the next chapter instead. I also have to mention the design of the book. The cover isn’t just gorgeous – every detail in it is actually important in the novel. Also, there is a swirly design on the inner part of every page, and every chapter is preceded by a page that is all-black and has a quote from ‘The Book of the Eternal Rose’ on it. We don’t know what exactly that book is yet, but the quotes set the scene for the next chapter without signposting too much or giving anything away. They are mostly medical discourse, and I really liked that aspect of the novel and how it was linked to the artistic.

Another thing I found intriguing is that there are so many suspects with possible motives, and that it is never quite clear how reliable Cass is as a narrator. I could never really pinpoint whether she is slightly paranoid and hysterical at times, or just a really intuitive young woman with keen instincts. Venice has eyes everywhere, and Cass feels almost constantly watched – often with good reason. She never knows whom to trust: Falco keeps secrets from her, her aunt never told her what exactly happened to her parents when they died on the continent, and she cannot go to anyone with what she knows because they might tell the wrong people.

Overall, Venom is a fascinating, sensual read in a wonderfully rendered setting, full of mystery, allure and danger. The ending was a good mixture of wrap-up with enough open questions to make me really want to read the sequel, Belladonna, asap! The novel is well-paced and beautifully written, the characters fleshed-out, memorable, and easy to connect with.
I’d recommend this for slightly more mature teens since it’s quite a bit more frank about certain issues than I expected (I’m not at all complaining!). A must-read for any fan of YA historical fiction with lush settings and a great cast!

Have you guys read Venom? What was your impression? Does it sound like your kind of book? I'd love to exchange some opinions :)

Sunday, December 30, 2012

Stacking the Shelves is a weekly meme hosted by Tynga's Reviews for us to show off all the new books we got in the past week, no matter whether it's print or ebooks, gifted, bought, won, for review...

My apologies, I usually make this post on Saturday mornings but erm... wasn't possible this time. So now it's a Sunday post. I did get some more kindle books yesterday though, so it makes more sense anyway :)

I was so happy when I got approved for these books! I'm especially curious for Julie Kagawa's adult Immortal Rules prequel. And Indigo Awakening... well, it's not a book I would have checked out because of the cover, but the description was amazing and then all those great reviews kept popping up. When I saw that it was still on NetGalley even after the release, I just couldn't resist any longer.

Ebook special deal
Indie author Rae Hachton has a special deal for her Pretty In Black series on her homepage at the moment. You can get all three books, even one that isn't officially out yet, for only 11.99$. I think they're usually around 6$ each. Click here to find out more. Deal ends tonight!

I think the only one I paid for was Ten Tiny Breaths, but it was 99 cents. This might be different in your region or at the time you're viewing it though! I wanted Ten Tiny Breaths already before it came out, so this was a great opportunity. I bought the other ones pretty much on a whim, one because I want to read more steampunk and the other because it's been quite a while since I've read adult Urban Fantasy; both descriptions sounded interesting.

Since I just keep buying loads of ebooks but never get around to reading them, I'll have to make an intervention soon. I think once I've finished my current paperback I'll make myself read ebooks only. I'm behind on my NetGalley books anyway, and I have sooo many awesome sounding novels on my kindle app! I really need to get a real kindle.

What do you guys think of my haul? Have you read any of those books? And what did you get this week?

Since this is also a week of looking forward, this last day's topic is about the books we're most excited to read next year. And again, it's very hard to limit that to only 10...This list is without a couple books I'm excited about but already have ARCs for, though I haven't read them yet.

Splintered, by A.G. HowardI heard about Splintered ages ago and was immediately intrigued. A dark retelling of Alice in Wonderland! And now I keep reading all those amazing reviews and just can't wait to see for myself what it's like and whether I prefer Jeb or Morpheus...

Clockwork Princess, by Cassandra ClareWill Herondale. That is... well, not all, but a great deal of it. Will breaks my heart like few book boys can. I would have included him in my book boyfriend post yesterday, but I read Clockwork Prince in 2011. I hurt. I hurt so much I actually cried ugly tears past midnight on Christmas. I just need to know how it all ends, and I'm keeping my fingers crossed for Will/Tessa though I don't see how it could happen. Don't get me wrong, I like Jem too. He's a wonderful guy, and I don't doubt that he loves Tessa and would do anything for her. I just like Will more and feel that I understand him better.

With All My Soul, by Rachel VincentI'm fairly new to this series, meaning I read it all in 2012, but I feel very bittersweet about it ending. I have grown to love Kaylee, Tod, Sabine, Emma, and the others so much! I think there will be a happy ending, though not one without heartbreak, but I will be sad no matter what because I'll have to say goodbye to the world Rachel Vincent created. I'll actually have to say goodbye to two of her worlds, because Oath Bound will be released in April as well. (Did that count as cheating?)

Dance of the Red Death, by Bethany GriffinAfter the way Masque of the Red Death ended, I am extremely curious about and somewhat wary of the sequel. The writing will be phenomenal, I'm not worried about that. But nothing good could possibly be in store for Araby in a world as destroyed as hers, or could there? I hope she and Will can work things out, and I hope Elliott will deboard the airship before it lands *ahem*. I guess you can tell who I'm rooting for...

The Indigo Spell, by Richelle Mead
I thought this would be a trilogy, with The Indigo Spell concluding it all, but I recently heard that there will be more books. I am not at all annoyed with that, because I love this series even more than I did Vampire Academy. It's a bit more... grown up? Also, I really enjoy seeing it all from the alchemyst's point of view. Though how much longer Sydney's POV will be alchemyst-conform remains to be seen. Not all that much, is my guess...
Also: Adrian Ivashkov. Enough said.

The Coldest Girl in Coldtown, by Holly Black
Yup, this one does not have a cover yet. But I've wanted it for the better part of a year already. It'll be out in September. It shares its name with one of Holly Black's short stories that I've read... and re-read. I love that story, and I just can't wait to read a whole novel set in that world! I hope Dante will be in it. He was only a subsidiary character, but I really liked him. I also hope that the cover will be revealed soon!

Sweet Peril, by Wendy Higgins
Kaidan Rowe. Not the only reason I want this book asap, but an important one - especially since we were lucky enough to read a couple scenes from his POV. However, Sweet Evil also had a great heroine in Anna and an incredibly intriguing world that I miss. I'll definitely re-read it before digging into Sweet Peril when it comes out. May the Neph rebellion start soon!

A Darkness Strange & Lovely, by Susan Dennard
I loved Something Strange & Deadly to pieces, and I can't wait to read more of Eleanor and the Spirit Hunters' adventures! Susan Dennard posted a few teasers during NaNoWriMo, so I already know that there will be an airship crash in Egypt, and that part of it takes place in Paris. Yay! And there will be more Daniel.

Phoenix, by Elizabeth Richards
After pining for Black City for a year and then finally getting to read it, I'm already waiting... again. Thank god the sequel will be out in June rather than November. I really need more of Ash and Natalie and the Darklings! Elizabeth Richards dystopian world is just so intriguing, I simply need more of the conflict and plot and romance...

Between the Devil and the Deep Blue Sea, by April Genevieve Tucholke
Bad, bad boy. The description already makes it clear that River is a liar... but is he demonic in nature, too? And I'll have to wait until August to find out! Dark crumbling houses. Cliffs. Sea. Kisses in cemeteries. A boy crooked smile and a taste for coffee. Dear book fairy, let there be ARCs on NetGalley or Edelweiss...

Thursday, December 27, 2012

Hey guys :) After telling you all about my favorite books, covers, and villains of 2012, now it's time for my book boyfriends... and choosing was tough, though made slightly easier by the fact that some of my top book boyfriends are from novels I haven't read this past year. I'll have to make a post about them some time...

Here are my favorites of the past year:

Varen Nethers from Kelly Creagh's Nevermore series
I'm really glad that I re-read Nevermore to prepare for Enshadowed, so I could choose this cover. Varen would have topped my list anyway, read in 2012 or not. I went completely nuts about this book as soon as I first read it, and the year-long wait for the sequel nearly killed me. It was very much worth it though! I love Varen's mysteriousness, implied vulnerability, intelligence, looks (dark haired and green eyed? Yes please. And the cover model is perfect.), musical and dressing taste, humor, handwriting and choice of ink color, car... the list goes on. I am also slightly scared of him... in a good way.

Tod Hudson from Rachel Vincent's Soul Screamers series
I liked Tod from the beginning, but absolutely loved him in If I Die and Before I Wake. His humor, his loyalty, his wit, his courage. How perfectly he understands and suits Kaylee. I have marked up so many of his quotes, and actually found myself sighing out loud. Which is untypical for me. Nevermind that he's dead, selectively visible, can walk through walls, and short-range teleport.

Ash from Julie Kagawa's Iron Fey series
I've only read the first three books but I love Ash. He's winter court, and I am winter born. His sword skills and looks do not hurt. Neither does the fact that beyond the icy exterior he is actually caring and passionate when it comes to Meghan. When he pledged himself to her in The Iron Queen I had tears in my eyes...

Bram from Lia Habel's Dearly, Departed
If you had told me that a ZOMBIE would be one of my favorite book boyfriends of the year, I would have laughed at you. Then I would have told you Hell No. That was before Bram. That his face is still intact and he doesn't look zombie-gruesome apart from the pallor certainly helps. But from the beginning, I liked the parts from his POV. He is just such an honest, loyal, selfless guy. I love him and Nora as a couple, and kept trying very hard not to think about how little time they will actually have together because of his inescapable eventual demise.

Ash Fisher from Elizabeeth Richard's Black City
I still owe you guys the review for this novel... my apologies! I loved Ash from the beginning. I could tell that much already from the sample chapters I read months before the book actually came out. He is smart, tall, edgy, my type. I liked his sarcasm. I even liked his... realistic hopelessness? His yearning for the Darkling side of the wall? But I found that I liked him even more when he finally found something worth fighting for. Worth dying for. (Damn now I want to re-read the book...)

Daemon Black from Jennifer L. Armentrout's Lux series
I would find Daemon incredibly infuriating. I think if I met him in real life, we would be bitching at each other non-stop. But I would feel drawn to him anyway. I've only read the first two books but I adore how much he cares about Katy and how they can push each other's buttons. Also, he's super strong and fiercely loyal to his sister.

Adrian Ivashkov from Richelle Mead's Vampire Academy and Bloodlines
I remember finding him very annoying when he first shows up in VA, but then I grew to like him. Great humor. I felt very sorry for him at the end of VA, though I thought Rose did belong with Dimitri. I never would have guessed that I would start shipping him with Sydney of all people! I didn't even like her until I was inside her head. I love Adrian trying to change and become a better person. Plus, he's an artist, and a little tragic. But his way with words is what really does me in.

Cassel Sharpe from Holly Black's Curse Workers series
Oh Cassel. Another tragic case. The actually good guy who can never conceive of himself as such. His family is completely wacked and I would never want to meet any of them, but Cassel is so full of guilt over what he believes to have done... he's different. His grandpa thinks so too, was my impression. Cassel has great snark, an incredibly resourceful mind, and amazing ideas for cons and how to pull them off. My heart kept breaking for what was happening to him during the series. Over and over.

Sebastian from Kelly Keaton's Gods and Monsters series
I liked him from the moment Ari laid eyes on him. Another boy fighting the nature of who and what he is... are you beginning to see a pattern in my boy choices? Sebastian is half warlock half vampire and caught in the middle of two of the most powerful families in all of New 2, a re-imagined New Orleans. Powerful. Smart. Torn. And ready to help Ari with whatever she needs. I adore him, and I'm so glad there will be a third books after all!

Cas Lowood from Kendare Blake's Anna Dressed in Blood
Cas' voice was one of my favorites I read all year. I love snarky and sarcastic. Cas tries never to get emotionally involved with anybody, because he knows that as soon as he solves one of his ghost hunter cases, he will have to move anyway. He is incredibly determined and strong, and exceptionally good at what he's doing. Boys with knives. Yum. Provided the knives are not pointed in my direction. I also liked to see him slowly change and come to appreciate having friends and opening up to them a bit. Can't wait for Girl of Nightmares to come out in paperback so I can read more of him and Anna!

Day three means the participants can choose among several topics. Many of them fell flat for me because I read less than 10 books this year that would fit the description. I wavered between debuts and villains for a while, but eventually settled for villains because even though I'm very fond of a good villain, I never bothered to think about a top ten list before. Sometimes I find it even hard to identify any one villain. Maybe an antagonist or a group of them, but not a real villain. I also tend to side with the bad guys every once in a while...

Here are the top ten villains of books I read this year that I eventually came up with. It was much harder than I thought because sometimes the villain-ness is not quite clear. I think that is because I prefer books where the line between 'good' and 'evil' is not so clear cut...

Avari from the Soul Screamers series by Rachel VincentAvari is just purely evil. Not shred of good in him. He is greed personified. He wants Kaylee. And he stops at nothing to get her, no matter whose body he has to hijack or which of her loved ones he has to kill. And still I found him disturbingly intriguing at times.

Jonathan / Sebastian from City of Lost Souls by Cassandra ClareClary's brother, the half-demon. This guy is sick. But again, fascinating. It's hard not to have some sort of passionate reaction to him. Plus, he's extremely intelligent and cunning, and I'm always drawn to guys with brains.

Jake Tower from Rachel Vincent's Unbound seriesI'm especially thinking of Shadow Bound here. What he has done to Kori is just unspeakably cruel. I hate his guts. What I like about him is that he is not necessarily motivated with the wish to do evil. He's more of a businessman - cunning and ruthless, going for the utmost efficiency and best way to control his bound subjects.

Thiago from Days of Blood & Starlight by Laini TaylorI first wanted to go for the emperor's brother but couldn't remember his name for the life of me. I don't have the book with me to check. But actually Thiago, the white wolf, is the better villain because of his perfidity and manipulative wiles. I hated his guts from the beginning, hated his possessiveness of Karou and how he guilt-tripped her into working for his goals, how he kept her out of the information-loop. Terrible guy. Deserved what he got.

Athena from Kelly Keaton's Gods and Monsters seriesI thought Athena was a bit too stereotypical for a female villain in the first book and was glad to find her more complex in book two. She's the goddess of both war and wisdom, and I liked learning more about her past and where she was coming from. I still dislike her, but she's also a strong woman in a pantheon of misogynist, very patriarchal guys.

Barron Sharpe and Zacharov from Holly Black's Curse Workers seriesDepending on what book you choose, the villain sort of differs in this series. There are never any clear lines, and that's something I really enjoy about Black's novels. I actually like both Barron and Lila Zacharov's father. Zacharov is ruthless, but he's looking out for his family and subjects. I had the impression that he actually likes Cassel - doesn't mean he wouldn't kill him if he felt it necessary.Barron is also a bad guy, especially for what he did to his own brother! But he's also somehow tragic because of all the blowback he has to deal with, the amnesia etc. I liked his wit and the wordfights between him and Cassel.

Anna, from Anna Dressed in Blood by Kendare BlakeThis is again a strange case. Is or isn't Anna a villain? She's killed a lot of people, but she's not really evil. I thought she was pretty damn awesome in any case.

Cole, from Brodi Ashton's EverneathI liked Cole. He actually had some sort of personality. Then again, I tend to go for the bad boys. Was he a villain? Not sure. He abducted Nikki though and deceived her, but again I'm not sure whether his motives qualify him for a villain. I kept thinking that Nikki should just go with him. I mean her options were pretty bleak. I'd rather go back and be Cole's queen then die miserably and painfully in the Tunnels.

Cam, from Lauren Kate's Fallen seriesI read book 1 - 3 this year and depending on the installment, Cam comes across as more or less of a villain. I liked him. At the beginning, I actually much preferred him to Daniel both in looks and personality. Then there was a period when I thought he was a really mean and evil guy, but then I was fond of him again. He never hid things from Luce the way Daniel did, and he actually has a sense of humor.

Vivian from Kiersten White's ParanormalcyI've only read the first book in the series so I have no idea how this develops, but I liked Vivian's spunk. She and Evie are two sides of the same coin. I don't think Viv actually got that much 'screentime' but I remember her as strong, slightly psychotic, but also intriguing and potentially vulnerable. I read the book quite a while ago and under strange circumstances though, so my memory is a bit fuzzy.

So... these are my top ten. I thought to include Prince Prospero (? I think that was his name?) from Bethany Griffin's Masque of the Red Death, but he was somehow too oblique a figure...What do you guys think of my pics? Did I forget anyone obvious? Or do you disagree vehemently with one of my picks? Suggestions of books with great villains are also very welcome ;)

Waiting on Wednesday is a weekly meme hosted by Jill from Breaking The Spine to showcase upcoming book releases that we're excited about.

Expected release: April 2013
Publisher: Month9Books
Format: Paperback

Goodreads description:It’s been twenty three
days since Quinn has slept for more than minutes at a time. Demons have
invaded her dreams, stalking her, and whispering of her death. The lack
of sleep and crippling fear are ruining her life. Energy drinks and
caffeine pills don’t make a dent. When Quinn dozes off in the school
hallway, Aaron, an amnesiac with a psychic ability, accidentally enters
her nightmare. The demons are determined to keep them apart, and Aaron
from discovering the secret locked away in his memory. Together, they
could banish the darkness back to the underworld for good. That is,
unless the demons kill them first.

The cover is creepy, and the description sounds right up my alley! I love books with demons, books about dreams. I find the idea of being unable to sleep extremely terrible, therefore I am drawn to it - in fiction, of course! I want to know why Quinn has nightmares, what Aaron has forgotten, and how he can enter her dreams. The lore sounds really interesting and I'm curious about the 'rules' of this world!What do you think of my pick, and what are you waiting for this Wednesday?

Tuesday, December 25, 2012

Hey guys :) Merry Christmas to all of you! I hope you can spend some relaxed days with your loved ones and eat tons of cookies ;) I'm sure eating more than I should, but my mom's are just too good to resist ^^''

And it's all about the cover-pretty of 2012! Choosing was really hard for me and I'm sure I simply forgot about quite a few really amazing ones. They must be for books published in 2012, and it would be better if we'd actually read them though it's not necessary.

Here I go... click the covers to get to Goodreads.

I haven't read Opal, Ten Tiny Breaths, and Blackbirds yet but the covers and descriptions sound awesome! I generally tried to choose different types of covers. I like the more abstract, illustration-design of Unspken and Blackbrids a lot, but of course I also like girls in pretty dresses... and there are so many amazing covers of that type around now! Also, I would love to have included Clockwork Princess and Splintered but those won't be out until next year.

Here are my three honorable mentions:

Two more pretty dress covers I really liked. And I like the simplicity of the cover for Confessions of an Angry Girl.

What do you guys think of my choices, and what made it onto your lists?

anticipated books

FTC Disclaimer:

I don't know if I actually need one of those since I'm not a US blogger, but here goes: the books I review here were mostly paid for by myself, though I also receive e-copies via NetGalley. No matter how I got them, my reviews always represent my honest opinion and I do not nor will I ever accept financial compensation for them.